History

Founded in 1956, the University of South Florida was the first independent state university
conceived, planned and built in the 20th century. The university has made incredible
strides in 60 years, developing into one of the nation's leading research institutions.

Read about the major milestones in the history of this high-impact, global research
university.

1950s

Original Accent Site for USF

June 18, 1955 Florida Governor LeRoy Collins signs into law House Bill 1007, written by Representative
Sam Gibbons, creating a new state university in Hillsborough County.

December 18, 1956 The Florida Cabinet approves a resolution to build the new university on the Fowler
Avenue property. At the time, World War II's Henderson Air Field occupied the space.
USF would later be built on the practice bombing range just north of the airfield.

July 16, 1957 The Board of Control names John S. Allen the first president of USF.

October 22, 1957 The Florida Cabinet approves the name "University of South Florida," in part because
it is the southernmost university in the state at the time.

1960s

September 26, 1960 The first day of classes and a convocation ceremony take place. With classes under
way, USF becomes the first major state university planned, built and opened in the
20th century, as well as Florida's first metropolitan university.

November 1962 "Golden Brahman" is chosen as the university's mascot and is unveiled at an All-University
Fun Fest.

1963 WUSF-FM begins broadcasting as the second noncommercial public radio station licensed
in Florida.

First Commencement Ceremony

December 1963 First commencement ceremonies are held, with 326 degrees conferred. The first commencement
takes place on December 22.

November 1, 1964 The Board of Regents approves planning for master's degree programs in all four colleges:
Education, Liberal Arts, Basic Studies, and Business Administration.

1965 USF gets full accreditation from Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

USF St. Petersburg Campus

July 1, 1965 USF occupies the site of the St. Petersburg campus on Bayboro Harbor.

1966 The first edition of the student newspaper, The Oracle, is published. It replaces
the campus edition of the Tampa Daily Times started in September 1960.

September 1967 Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity becomes the first Greek organization on campus. It went
national with four more fraternities and three sororities early in the month.

March 1968 USF is admitted to the NCAA.

1969 The USF Alumni Association is incorporated.

1970s

December 4, 1970 The first USF basketball game is played against the University of Florida at Curtis
Hixon Hall. USF wins 85-78.

1971The USF medical school opens. In July, the school's charter students begin their studies.

February 1971 Cecil Mackey becomes USF's second president and begins an era that brings USF to
a new level with a focus on research and funding.

May 25, 1971 First doctoral degree conferred to Joseph Houbrick, a student of biology and marine
science.

1972 The College of Basic Studies is dissolved and the College of Liberal Arts is split
into four new colleges: the College of Arts & Letters, Social & Behavioral Sciences,
Natural Sciences, and Fine Arts. The CBS acts as a community college within USF, instructing
students in mandatory courses for the equivalent of two years.

1973 The School of Nursing opens.

USF Sarasota-Manatee Campus, Aerial View

September 6, 1974 New College in Sarasota joins the state university system and USF Sarasota.

April 15, 1978 John Lott Brown is inaugurated as USF's third president.

1980s

1980 USF's Graduate School is created.

USF Sun Dome, Aerial View

November 29, 1980 The USF Sun Dome is inflated and booked for concerts, sporting events and commencement
ceremonies.

May 18, 1982 USF's baseball team wins its first Sun Belt championship.

1984 USF becomes the nation's first university to offer a Ph.D. in applied anthropology.

February 15, 1988 Francis T. Borkowski begins his term as the fourth USF president.

1990s

1991 The Colleges of Arts & Letters, Natural Sciences and Social and Behavioral Sciences
are merged into a new college: the College of Arts and Sciences. CAS becomes the largest
college on the USF campus.

1994USF is ranked as the nation's 18th largest university in terms of enrollment; it is
the 8th largest urban university.

January 17, 1994 Betty Castor becomes the fifth president of USF.

1996 The Sam & Martha Gibbons Alumni Center opens.

September 6, 1997USF begins its first-ever season of NCAA football. The Bulls, playing in Division
I-AA, open with an 80-3 win at Raymond James Stadium over Kentucky Wesleyan before
49,000 fans.

1998 USF is named by the Florida Board of Regents as a "Research I" university, along
with the University of Florida and Florida State.

2000s

2000USF St. Petersburg begins admitting freshmen and sophomores under a plan approved
by the Board of Regents and the Legislature to offer more classes for underclassmen.
Students can take all the classes they need at St. Pete and earn a 4-year degree there.

President Judy Genshaft

July 5, 2000 Judy Genshaft takes office as the sixth president of USF.

November 5, 2003 USF is admitted into the Big East Conference.

October 26, 2004 The Board of Trustees approves for USF to become a system.

May 20, 2005 Drs. Kiran and Pallavi Patel pledge $18 million to USF. With the state match, the
gift is valued at $34.5 million, the largest gift in USF history. The gift will be
used to construct the Dr. Kiran C. Patel Center for Global Solutions.

August 2006USF St. Petersburg opens its first student residence hall and officially becomes a
residential campus.

August 28, 2006 USF Sarasota-Manatee holds its first day of classes on its new campus.

December 2006 USF is the only university in Florida to be selected by the Carnegie Foundation for
the Advancement of Teaching's new Community Engagement classification.

November 2, 2007 USF celebrates the grand opening of C.W. Bill Young Hall, which houses USF's Joint
Military Leadership Center and ROTC programs.

2008 The National Science Foundation announces that USF ranks 63rd among the nation's
top research universities, according to a survey of federally financed research and
development expenditures at universities and colleges in 2006.

Phyllis P. Marshall Student Center

August 20, 2008 The new Phyllis P. Marshall Student Center opens to the public. As the hub of student
life on the USF Tampa campus, the center features an expanded dining center, food
court, a 1,200 seat ballroom, meeting spaces and lounges.

October 2008 USF Health opens the Carol and Frank Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare, the
first ambulatory health center in the country built from the ground up around quality,
service and technology, where the patient is the center of the health care system.

November 2008 The USF men's soccer team wins the first Big East championship in program history.

April 4, 2009 The USF women's basketball team makes program history by winning the WNIT Championship
for the first time.

June 2009 USF becomes the first university in the country to strike an accord with the Department
of Veterans Affairs to offer special services for veterans taking advantage of the
new GI Bill, called The Office of Veteran Services on Campus.

August 28, 2009 The Chronicle of Higher Education names USF the nation's fastest growing university
for federal research funds.

October 2009 USF kicks off the USF: Unstoppable Campaign, a comprehensive fundraising effort by
the University of South Florida to celebrate the energy, vision and future of one
of the country's most exciting and engaged universities.

2010s

February 5, 2011 USF President Judy Genshaft and her husband, Steve Greenbaum, donate $1 million to
create the new Genshaft/Greenbaum Passport Scholars Fund, which provides financial
support to USF students who want to study abroad.

Lee Roy Selmon Athletic Center

Sept. 4, 2011 The university's athletics center is renamed in honor of Lee Roy Selmon, the first
athletic director at USF, after he passes away.